AN: Welp Monday was as close to a comedy as I think I can write. So, here's something completely different. Also, romance notwithstanding, lets not forget that Lori and Hux are villains.

.***.***.***.***.

"You'll be on speaker and Vaylor will have a visual into your room, but you won't be able to see us." Hux filled Lori in on more details as they walked deeper into the interrogation wards.

The halls were empty of any other personnel. Lori believed Hux when he said that all the workers were gone, but she didn't want to spend any longer in the dim halls than she had to.

"As long as you give me a verbal cue, I can figure something out."

Hux still wasn't sure how to give advice rather than an order, but he tried, "I've been using electric shocks. Whenever I act like I'm activating your table, arch your back and try to scream, but don't actually do it. You wouldn't be able to get a breath in at the voltage the table is set at."

The oddness of the conversation wasn't lost on Lori, but she appreciated that the general was trying to be helpful. Even if it was in his own strange way.

"I've been electrocuted before, I got this."

Hux was about to ask about the occasion before he decided that he would have the chance later. They came to an empty room. While the door took its time to open the general took a moment to try at a complement.

"I'm sure you do."

Lori waited until the door was done and she had stepped into the room to reply, "I never thought I would say this, but strap me into the torture table and let's get this show on the road."

Hux appreciated the absurdity of the situation and was glad that Lori had a similar mindset.

"After you, captain Gallus."

The bounty hunter gave the general a small roll of the eyes before stepping onto the small stand at the bottom of the table. It was rotated to a vertical position, and when her back rested against its surface she found that her head fit snuggly into a brace. Hux clamped the thick restraints down around Lori's wrists and ankles.

Satisfied that his accomplice couldn't move from the board, Hux turned the table on, only to lean it back thirty or so degrees.

"Don't suppose you can loosen the cuffs a little? I think the blood flow to my hands has stopped."

"Sorry, they only have one setting"

Lori was pretty sure that was by design. She knew she wasn't going to be shocked, burned, or otherwise tortured, but being trapped on the table was already grating at her. It wouldn't be too much of an act on her part to look scared and panicked.

Hux was a stranger to worrying for another, but he could see that Lori was uncomfortable. Not sure what to think about seeing the bounty hunter strapped to the table and completely at his mercy, he made a mental note to make this quick.

But he still needed to make it convincing.

"You don't look like you've spent a day on the tables," Hux commented.

Lori thought about it for a second before trying to wiggle her uniform out of place, "run a hand through my hair, really mess it up. If I'd been flailing all day it would be all over the place."

Hux couldn't really get a hand between Lori's head and the table from where he stood, so he lowered the table until it was completely horizontal. Lori was aware of her compromising position but managed to awkwardly shuffle some wrinkles into her cloths. While she did, a few strands of hair fell from their place. Occasionally Hux's fingers would catch and harshly tug at a section.

"Ouch." It didn't really hurt, but Lori still had a point to prove.

"Sorry," the general looked down at her, "I don't know how, but your collar is somehow still in place."

Of all the times for her uniform to be stubbornly clinging to regulation.

Lori leaned her head back as far as the head rest would let her, "go on."

Leaning over the brown haired bounty hunter to tug at her uniform left Hux with stronger opinions about tables and tie downs, but now was neither the time nor the place for him to say anything about it. Lori distracted herself from the claustrophobic feel of the head rest by focusing on the general's cologne. His hands at her neck were another welcome distraction, though now was neither the time nor the place for her to say anything about it.

Taking a last look at the woman, Hux added a few final touches. He twisted her rank band to one side, loosened and moved the belt that laid over Lori's tunic off center, and then he considered one more adjustment.

Lori saw him thinking about it, "Just do it."

Not needing to be told a second time, the general unclasped the top fastener of her tunic. It wasn't at all revealing, if anything it did nothing more than let the fabric move an extra inch out of its original place.

But Hux was very aware that he was undoing the bounty hunters clothing. Lori was just as aware of the fact. Neither of them thought now was the time or place to address it.

"That should do the trick," Hux looked down at Lori.

"I hope so." She added on.

The general returned the table to its upright, but tilted, position. Lori looked around the room in search of cameras or speakers. She didn't have to search for long before she found the camera. It was set up to see the prisoners face, she wouldn't have much opportunity to hide a poorly faked expression or a delayed reaction.

The table groaned to a stop. Not but a second later Hux powered the control panel down. He knew a malfunction was wildly unlikely, but he'd rather leave it off just in case.

"See you on the other side, Armie." Lori spoke with a well faked sense of confidence.

Hux just barely saw though it but he wasn't about to call her on it, "it won't be long now. I'll be back soon."

An awkward silence settled for just a moment before Hux left the room.

Lori wasn't one to panic. Just being tied to a table definitely wasn't going to be the thing that pushed her over the edge. The tight hold on her head wasn't welcome, but that alone wasn't what was eating at her.

She wondered when exactly she had decided to trust the general enough to let him strap her to a torturers table with no questions asked. More than that, she had been ready to suggest it herself. She sighed, unsure of whether or not she was even upset.

No. She decided, she wasn't. If she could talk to herself from one month ago, Lori wasn't sure she would have believed a word she said. Even if she could go back just one day and let herself know what was coming, she wasn't sure she would have bought it.

As it was now, she was left clenching and unclenching her hands in an attempt at getting the blood to flow in them. She was surprised it was a problem, with as much as her pulse had been racing only a moment ago.

.***.***.***.***.

While he waited on the door to Vaylor's chamber to open, Hux tried to shake a few stubborn thoughts from his mind. Now was a time to focus on work, and not personal pursuits.

Just barely convincing himself of that idea took as long as the door did. Putting on his best I've-already-won face the general stepped to the front of Vaylor's table. The door shut and Vaylor just barely had it in him to speak.

"Eat. Shit."

His nose was broken. The blood from the wound had already dried to nearly black and mostly chipped away. He was missing a tooth as well. Only one, the interrogator must have decided more would make talking too difficult.

The swelling around Vaylor's eyes had gone down, only to be replaced by a deep bruise. With his vision cleared he got a good look at the general. Smug as ever, Hank would have taken a swing at him on principle if he had a free hand.

The grin on the general's face wasn't all an act. As far as Hux was concerned, he did have an ace in the hole.

He started with a thin veneer of civility, "Before you upset me, you get one last chance to tell me what I want to know."

Hank still had gory residue left in his mouth from his lost tooth. Instead of coming up with some clever taunt or a swear, he spat a mouthful of old blood at the general.

It landed short, but Hux took it for its intended meaning.

"That's a shame."

A small click of a button had a screen drop out of its hidden sheath in the ceiling. It wasn't often that it got used, and Hank wasn't sure where the general was going with it. He would have made a sarcastic comment, but after the days on the table he hadn't the energy for it.

He especially didn't have the energy to deal with what he saw on the screen.

Captain Gallus was strapped to a table. Uniform ruined and hair in complete disarray, Hank could only worry that meant she had gotten nothing but electric shocks for however long they had been holding onto her. Her head hung down as low as the restraint would let it, leaving Vaylor with an indirect view of her features.

"She doesn't know anything." Hank was only half bluffing, and he knew it.

But he didn't know as much a Hux did.

"That's certainly what she said, but we both know that's not true." The general stood with his back to the screen. In part so that he could watch Vaylor, but also because he didn't want to see Lori in whatever pitiful pose she had put herself into.

Hank tried to figure something out, but his mind was slow from a few days without food or sleep. Captain Gallus didn't know many details, captain Cray had seen to that. She could name everyone on the Finalizer, but the second that the general started asking about sources or long term plans she wouldn't have anything for him.

Besides, Hank couldn't help but blame himself for part of this mess. The only proof they could have found on Gallus was the copy of the report that Hank gave her.

"Last chance Vaylor. Name the rest of your conspirators. Name your sources. Name your goals. Then this can stop."

Hank was taking a gamble and he didn't like it.

"Get fucked Hux."

The general wasn't too surprised at the initial defiance. Miffed, he pulled a remote that wasn't connected to anything from his coat pocket. He made a show of pushing the button on it, taking care to click it loudly.

"Oops." He gave the word perfectly dead pan

Lori heard the moment coming and snapped into action. A quick scream became nothing more than a yelp while she pulled at the restraints and arched her back as far as she could pull it. Eyes going back as far as she could push them and features twisting into the best approximation of agony she could make, she looked like a woman begging for death. There wasn't any power running through the table, but just keeping up the act was physically taxing.

Especially for how long it lasted.

"Stop! Hey!" she heard Vaylor shouting over the speakers in her room.

In Vaylor's room Hux considered the remote but made no move to stop the apparent assault, "ah-ah. I'll stop when I want."

Lori faked a spasm just to get a chance to readjust and shake the strain from the muscles in her back. It didn't help much. She wasn't sure if Hux had kept the juice flowing through Hank for this long at a time. She knew from experience that just one shock this long would have her telling her captures whatever they wanted.

"Shit! Fine, stop! You're going to kill her."

Lori's back was definitely killing her.

Hux clicked the remote heavily again, "That's better."

Even though the electricity had supposedly stopped, Lori was careful not to break character. She really was huffing for breath and more than ready to relax, but she also bit her tongue to force a tear to her eye.

Hank bought the act completely. Hux didn't turn around for fear of what exactly he might see.

Keeping true to what the former sergeant thought of him, Hux held up the remote, "Names."

He already knew, curtesy of Lori. This was just serving as a way to test how truthful Hank was feeling. He watched the man grapple with his decision, just before Hux thought he might have to try a second round of fake torture Hank spoke.

"Mina Cray. My boss is Mina Cray."

"Is that so?" Hux acted as if he had learned something vital. He watched the spirit fade out of Hanks eyes. Savoring the look as a sign of victory over the man, Hux was almost reluctant to move on.

But he had more pressing questions.

"And what exactly did she want to do with my report?"

At that Hank couldn't help but grin just a little. He wasn't sure how long he had been trapped here, but he knew it had to be more than a day.

He knew it had to have been long enough for at least one of the other copies to have made it to the Absolution.

The former sergeant almost laughed because he wasn't sure what else to do. He'd been so close to getting off this scrap heap before the general swooped in and ruined his day. If only he'd been a little luckier than neither him nor captain Gallus would have to die that day.

Vaylor was at least lucky enough to understand what he was risking.

He was at least lucky enough to die knowing that they had won anyways.

Hux looked at the man and thought he may have broken him. Lori heard a half choked laughter coming from the speaker and wished that she could have a visual.

"You asshole. It doesn't matter what she wanted, it's about what she did."

The general had one idea about what Vaylor might be saying, "What?"

"You really think she just sent me out with the only copy? Mina hates me almost as she does you."

Hux's blood ran cold.

"You're lying." He told the trapped man, desperate to believe his own words.

"Piece of shit, you probably tortured Gallus to get that idea. Mina didn't tell her shit, just let her go."

Hank could live with the idea of leaving captain Cray to fend for herself, and he hadn't actually named Wilt, Janu, or the others. He was also trying to buy Lori a ticket out of here, or –if he were being honest with himself- a quick death.

Not wanting to be lectured by his prisoner Hux powered on the table. Lori didn't get a warning before the screaming started. It cycled off and on more times than she bothered to count, and in the silence that followed she thought that Hank might be dead.

Then the talking began again.

"Where are the other copies?" the only reason Hux didn't loom over the table was because he knew to avoid the former sergeants bloody spit.

"On Cardinals desk." The man huffed out.

He wasn't lying. Hux could see the truth of the man's words with the tiny bit of life that had come back to him.

Hux wasn't concerned with who their source was. Not enough to bother letting Hank live long enough to pry the information out of him. Besides, he could always tear the information out of captain Cray or any of the conspirators that Lori had exposed.

Hank wasn't going to live to the end of the day, both of them knew that. Hux was happy to let the former sergeant be a training dummy for the new interrogator until his eventual death, but he wanted to deal his own uniquely cruel blow to the man.

Leaving the screen and microphones on, Hux left the room without a second word. Cardinal having the report may not spell death for the general, but it might mean a munity of the Absolution. If Cardinal went public with the information, it might even inspire a few other generals to form a coalition against Hux. Supreme Leader Snoke was a powerful ally, but he didn't control the hearts and minds of every general on his staff.

Hux wouldn't let revelations about is past be the thing to derail a glorious future.

But first, he was going to be unbelievably petty.

Stepping into Lori's cell, Hux made sure to stand in clear view of the camera. She wasn't sure where he was planning, so she didn't break character. Hank began saying something over the speaker but stopped when Hux deactivated the restraints.

Lori didn't question him. She had half an idea of what the general was thinking when she was free to step down onto the ground. The last bit of confusion was gone completely when Hux put an arm around Lori's shoulder.

"Would you like to tell mister Vaylor, or should I?"

The general was obviously upset, and she was pretty sure it would be better for him if she took the lead. It would certainly lessen the blow to Hank. But, her back hurt and she wasn't in the mood to talk. She wanted to see where this would go, besides.

"By all means," no longer hiding her wild space accent, she gestured to let the man speak

"Wilt Lox, Janu Conners, Stormtroopers BT-8429 and KL-2487," Hux listed off the other conspirators, "Lori has been quite the effective agent. I'm not surprised that you never suspected her."

Heavy silence came from the speaker, it bore the weight of a betrayed man. Through the video feed Hank didn't see the meek but helpful supply officer. Instead he was left to look into the eyes of a friend turned traitor. Even harder for him to wrap his head around was the physical closeness of the general and the captain. It was one thing to have been sold out for some reward, but another thing entirely to have been played by someone genuinely fond of the general.

Hux went on, "I'm sure that hideous grin is gone now, Vaylor. Shame that I won't be back to see you without it," the generals arm moved slightly over Lori's shoulder and he looked at her with a tilt of the head, "do you have any final words for your former co-conspirator?"

Lori knew Hux was being overdramatic, but she was happy to let him have his moment. Hank had been fine enough to talk to, but he was little more than a dead man now.

"Shame it had to come to this, Hank. Can't say it was anything personal, Hux here just got to me first. Thanks for the report by the way, not sure I'd be here if you hadn't done what you did."

Hank took the last of Lori's words as a cruel barb, though he wasn't sure what exactly she meant. Hux could appreciate the meaning behind what Lori said. Without her reading the report, last night never would have happened. Without that vulnerable moment bringing them closer together there was no way they would have even considered today's plan.

Today's plan that revealed its own urgent problems.

Hux spoke, "As much as I would love to stay here and rub Vaylor's face in it, we have more important matters."

Just before the general shut off the camera Lori got in one last comment.

"Sorry Hank, I'll tell Cray you told her so."

Spurred by that last petty comment, Hank began to finally talk back. He was cut off when the speaker powered down.

Once the camera was off, Lori did what she could to straighten her uniform back to its original place. Her hair would be a losing battle, so she did the best she could in tucking it back under her hat.

Hux would have taken a moment to ask about Lori's comment about captain Cray, but he had more urgent matters.

"Go back to your suite. Keep an eye out for a message, be ready to leave for the Absolution very soon." The general took a steps towards the open door

Lori was close behind him, "Armie, hey. What are we doing about Cardinal? Let's say he gets the report, then what?"

Cardinal was a capable commander. Hux's first fear was losing a whole ship and crew to the man, directly below that he worried that the captain might flee the First Order and join a Resistance cell in search of revenge.

"We try and keep him in line. If that doesn't work, well, his armor may be blaster resistant but without it he's just as vulnerable as the rest of us."

Lori didn't like planning a murder out loud, but if that's what it came too she wouldn't try and talk Hux out of it.

They quickly made down a hall.

Still telling herself she wasn't invested in the First Orders ideas or goals, Lori couldn't help but find herself worrying that it all might come crumbling down. Severe and unwelcoming though it might be, she had lived a better life in these last few weeks than she had in all her time roaming the New Republic.

Lori wasn't about to put her life on the line for something bigger than herself but, if she had to, she might pick up a blaster to defend her new found way of life.